Wednesday, 9 May, 2007
- 9 May 07, 05:30 PM
By Carol Rubra, programme producer
In an attempt to make the Home Office "fit for purpose" it has been - one will focus on and the other will manage the . Yet the architect of this makeover, John Reid, has . Will the Home Office ever be ? In a special programme, we examine the key issues facing an incoming Home Secretary and new Prime Minister.
Security
Will the newly restructured Home Office, with its greater focus on counter-terrorism, ensure that the mistakes made leading up to the 7 July bomb attacks never happen again? With four people arrested today in connection with the London bombings we have been in Beeston. The man who warned West Yorkshire police about Mohammed Sidique Khan two years before the attacks tells us that the police failed to respond to his warnings. Could they have intervened earlier and prevented the bombings?
Prisons and the judiciary
The challenges facing the newly formed Justice ministry are just as pressing. The prison population is rapidly approaching capacity and some senior judges have severe reservations about bringing prisons and courts into the same department. Today, Lord Falconer has unveiled his - but will it work?
Asylum
Can the asylum system ever give protection to those who need it while preventing the thousands who seek to abuse it from doing so? Paul Mason has the story of a Zimbabwean Trade Union activist whose two adult children applied for asylum in the UK. One was granted asylum, the other was refused. What does this say about the state of the asylum system?
Blair
And it's possibly been one of the most stage-managed departures in political history. David Grossman takes a look at some of the preparations which are under way ahead of Tony Blair's much trailed announcement of when he is stepping down as Prime Minister.
presents Wednesday's programme - on which comments are welcome below...
